I hope you had a wonderful Easter Sunday and were able to celebrate the spirit of renewal and rejuvenation that the Eastertide season represents.
In the University update sent Thursday, the provost outlined a modified approach to summer academic programs on campus. The aim is to balance offering opportunities to students and faculty alongside the number of activities that campus operations can safely support.
For Mendoza, most of our undergraduate summer courses are already online, so the news primarily affects our graduate programs. The announcement means that all teaching for our graduate degree programs this summer will be in-person.
Subject to current health and safety requirements, the following in-person orientations are scheduled for early summer:
- MS in Finance-Chicago: May 17 - 20
- MBA One-Year: June 1 - 11
- MS in Finance-Residential: June 7 - 11
- Executive MNA: June 11 - 13
- MS in Management: June 14 - 18
The graduate programs may provide individual accommodations for in-person teaching depending on their students’ circumstances and pedagogical needs, as well as faculty needs and circumstances. For example, the EMNA program, with the support of faculty and staff, is allowing students to choose whether to take a particular class in person or online.
It is exciting to be making these steps to return to normal. Still, returning to full operations is a process and will continue to require us to be flexible and patient.
There are many questions to be answered, such as what classroom arrangements will look like, whether visitors will be allowed, what any faculty accommodation process for the summer and fall looks like, and what the summer schedule means for staff returning to campus. The University continues to discuss these topics and many more. The University and I will keep you updated as decisions are made.
In Notre Dame,
Martijn